The mayor of the South Texas town of Hollywood Park has died after apparently being attacked by a 500-pound donkey on his ranch, officials said Wednesday.

The body of Mayor William "Bill" Bohlke, 65, was found Monday night during a search by Atascosa County Sheriff’s deputies and relatives, according to the sheriff’s office.

Chief Deputy David Soward told The Associated Press that Bohlke apparently was attacked on Monday morning by an aggressive male donkey on his ranch.

A written statement from the family, published on the Hollywood Park town website, said Bohlke suffered “a fatal injury while taking care of his prized cow herd near Pleasanton.”

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“Bill, your mayor, dearly loved serving you, our community, and we only wish he was here to continue doing so,” the family's statement said.

Bohlke, who was retired from the Air Force and had been a decorated B-52 pilot and squadron commander in the Vietnam War, was found about 50 yards from his truck, the San Antonio Express-News website reported.

“They can become very aggressive, very mean, sometimes triggered by a female in heat,” Soward told the paper. “We'll probably never know what triggered it, but it was evident that this particular donkey was involved, based on the evidence at the scene and what we saw on this donkey.” Soward did not elaborate.

Hollywood Park is a town of about 3,300 people north of San Antonio. Mayor Pro Tem Steve Phillips will step in as acting mayor, according to the AP.

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